Things change. We put our hopes for the future in our jobs and our income, but the company downsizes and we are unemployed. We invest in stocks so we will have adequate resources for the future, but the stock market crashes and our investments are gone. We buy a house to build equity, but the real estate values plummet. We trust in our health, but it flitters away over time. So we trust in families, but life brings death. Death brings changes to our relationships. Things change.

Well, not all things change. God does not change. Through the prophet Malachi, He made this fact known to all. The writer of Hebrews confirmed that Jesus is “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” God is faithful. God is dependable. God is gracious and merciful (but also just and righteous). God is reliable. He is worthy of our faith and trust.

Little children sometimes play the game, “Follow the Leader.” Whatever the leader does, everyone else is supposed to do. Two factors affect the measure of fun this game provides. One factor is the leader. He or she must do things that are creative and challenging but not so difficult that the others cannot follow suit. The second factor is the willingness of the rest of the group to follow. If they get attitude or refuse to go along, the game ends.

Many people have said the greatest challenge for the modern church is leadership. There is a myriad of materials available on this subject. I believe the greatest challenge is actually “followship.” Jesus calls us to follow Him. He is a creative and challenging leader. The question is, “Are we willing to follow?” Will we follow Him anywhere or only to the places we enjoy? Will we follow Him when it gets hard or only when it is difficult?

For the last six months, I have been with my family for a few days every about every six weeks. This has led to two certainties. First, when we are together, we do not want to waste any time. We do as much as possible as a family. We maximize the time. Second, when the time ends, it is painful. None of us likes the idea of separation. We want to stay together (and in just a few more weeks this will become a reality).

God wants to fellowship with us and we need to fellowship with Him. We need to constantly abiding in Him through the Holy Spirit. For me the question is this, “Do I long to be with God to the depths I long to be with my family.” After all, God is supposed to be my first love. Am I content with a hit and miss relationship with God, or do I hunger to know His presence constantly?

You rent a house. You sign the contract. You pay the rent. You move in. One day your landlord comes by. He tells you that you can no longer use the backyard. It is off limits. On another day, he tells you that the formal dining room can only be used on Sundays. Next, you are informed that the only half of the garage was available to you. Finally, he tells us the kitchen is only available from 1 to 5 p.m. each day. How long would it take you to get the message? You presence is not really wanted.

When we become Christians, we enter into contract. We agree to allow Jesus to have control of every part of lives. Sadly, we often start changing the rules. We have areas of lives that are off-limits – they have nothing to do with our faith (or so we think). We have some areas that are only for God to us on certain days or at certain times. By placing limits, we are saying that God’s presence is not really that important to us. We need to give Him our all.

In college, I coached my first Little League baseball team. We lost every game in the regular season. In the tournament, we managed to win the first two games. In the semifinal, we played a team that had beaten us twice, but they had used up their best two pitchers. I told all my players but two not to swing at any pitches. Yes, some struck out, but more walked and we won in three innings by the ten-run rule. In the championship, we played an undefeated team with the best pitcher. I told my players to swing on every pitch when they heard me say, “Swing.” We got more hits than we had all year and won the championship. Some parents questioned by tactics, but my players did not. They had learned to trust me. They knew I wanted what was best for them. Therefore, they willingly did what I asked them to do.

God wants what is best for us. He desires for us to achieve holiness and become fruitful. With that in mind, He gives us instructions to follow. The Holy Spirit shows us what He wants us to do. We must trust God. If we do, then we can be obedient to what He tells us to do.

Being mediocre or even average rarely takes much effort. Achieving excellence requires the investment of time. A star athlete makes his craft look simple, but he has invested hours in practice. A great musician seems to play her instrument with minimal effort, but she has rehearsed innumerable hours.

Becoming holy or being shaped into the image of Christ takes time. While it is the work of the Holy Spirit, we must be involved in the process. We must invest our time. We invest it in Bible study and prayer. We invest it in learning to recognize His voice. We invest it in fellowship with other believers. We invest it in worship. Becoming holy is a process. It requires our time and attention.

Where there is need, it is important to find the source of satisfaction.

- When I am hungry, I go to the pantry and find food.

- When I am thirsty, I go to the refrigerator and find something to drink.

- When I am tired, I go bed and find rest.

- When I need directions, I go to my GPS and find my way.

There are times when we have spiritual needs. We are spiritually hungry. We are spiritually thirsty. We are spiritually weary. We are in need of spiritual direction. Where do we go? Where can we find satisfaction? There is only one place to go. We must go to Jesus.

A young baseball player approaches you. He wants to know could be a good model from him if he wants to have a baseball career. If he wants to be a pitcher, you might tell him to emulate Roy Halladay but not Kerry Woods. Woods has been a major league pitcher for many years, but his career has been up and down. He is inconsistent. Halladay is one of those pitchers who is more like to win than lose every time he goes to the mound.

Christians are always looking for role models. We can find them in many places. However, there is one problem. All of our role models are flawed. No matter how good they might be, they have imperfections. They have good days and bad days. In reality, we only have one model. His name is Jesus. We are to be like him.

Do you recall a time in your childhood when you called someone an “Indian giver”? It designated someone who gave you something and then took it back. I have known people who give away an item because they thought it was broken. When the item was repaired and in good working condition, they wanted it back.

God invites us to bring our burdens and give them to Him. We can come before the throne of grace and leave them at our feet. Most Christians that I know are good at doing this. Unfortunately, we are often “Indian givers.” We give God our burdens, but just before we leave, we take them back. We carry them out with us instead of leaving them with God. We need to leave with our loving Heavenly Father.

One of the hardest things about being separated from my family has been missing the baseball games. Instead of coaching, I receive text message throughout my son’s games. If something really good happens I get a phone call. I love to him telling me about the things he did or the big plays in the game. After I get the information, I have to pass it on. Unfortunately, this probably means my California friends have to listen to more baseball stories than really interest them. I cannot help him. I am proud and have to share. I did the same thing with my daughter’s tennis matches.

You have to share the things that mean something to you – the things that really get you excited. You want others to know. If you keep them in, you might burst. When we think about how much God has done for us through Christ, how can we keep it to ourselves. We must express our thanks. We must sing the songs of salvation and share the good news of the gospel.